Principal

• We are beings that respond primarily to external stimuli. (Positive re-enforcement or behaviourism.)
• If we are given a reward for an action then it encourages us to repeat that activity.
• In a similar fashion fear of punishment concentrates the mind and ensures due diligence.
• In other words we can secure required responses by manipulating the stimuli.
• We are all motivated in the same way

• We each have distinct and different inner personal drives.
• Once our security needs are meet we are motivated by ego and self actualisation needs.
• The inner drives of an individual tend to be fixed, complex and related to our innermost needs, they have an intrinsic quality.
• When working with others we naturally adopt a “Team Role” (Belbin)

Manifestation

• The wide range of incentives schemes, which include Bonus systems, performance related pay, commission, suggestion schemes with prizes.
• Reward systems such as qualifications, promise of promotion, gold stars, employee of the month etc
• Staff appraisals that are designed to secure more effort.
• Audits to secure compliance.
• Non conformance reports
• League tables
• Reviews against budget or targets
• All those tools that seek to manipulate the employee towards what the ‘bosses’ want.
• The subtle use of fear of failure

• The organisation takes time to recognise and maybe even define the inner drives or strengths of each individual.
• It is seen as a necessary discipline for each person to understand the inner drives of his/her colleagues.
• The organisation aims to match job requirements with the inner drives or strengths of each individual
• Rather than putting effort into motivating the employee the company focuses on the design of the systems which will enable the individual to be all that he can be.
• There are comparable career paths for those who are not suited to ‘authority’ positions.
• Recognition of Hertzberg's observation that pay and conditions are hygiene factors – if they are not right then they de-motivate but once fair enhance pay does not motivate further. Money once agreed is taken off the agenda.
• When constructing teams individual team roles are considered.

Losses and Gains

"The basis of reward/punishment thinking is "Do this and you will get that" It is a manipulative process.

Losses

• The focus of the individual moves from the ‘this’- the task – and onto the ‘that’ – the reward.
• The temptation is to distort the data to secure the reward.
• It therefore reduces interest in the task, and to applying the mind so seeking improvement
• Continued use of extrinsic motivators smothers intrinsic motivation.
• The mechanism of punishment/rewards is a controlling mechanism by the giver over the receiver. This is recognised by the receiver and resented.
• It kills creativity and limits the willingness to take risks
• It hides real reasons for difficulties and lack of motivation.
• Fear dramatically weakens our motivation and resolve – it moves us into a self-protection mindset.
• When fear exists there are whole rafts of issues that are felt to be undiscussible. Undiscussible issues remain unresolved.
• Within time the operators gain control of the incentive scheme and manipulate it to their advantage

Gains

• It is easy to apply, requires little thought and perception.
• It allows management to avoid the real reasons for lack of motivation.
• It enhances the position of those in authority
• It is useful when it is not possible to design in any meaning to the work - when the work requires no thought.
• Provides short term gains in motivating individuals to secure the reward.
• It is in line with current thinking in our society.

Gains

• As the organisation has moved its focus from ‘motivating’ employees to thinking how it can utilise each person’s unique potential it gets much more from its staff.
• Fewer grades of management.
• Less tendency for individuals to seek promotion by securing a position of power and authority when it is not in sympathy with their motivational characteristic.
• Therefore less stress in the organisation. 
• The removal of fear makes a very positive contribution to morale and initiative.
• It enables creativity.
• It removes many current demotivators such as targets, budgets, incentives etc.

Losses

• Appreciating each individual’s motivational profile is a complex task.
• Defining individual motivational drivers is far from being an exact science
• Defining an individual’s motivation profile may be an infringement of personal privacy.
• It requires listening and empathy skills from the organisation.

Language

• Incentives
• Commission
• Performance Related Pay
• Competitive Tendering
• Qualifications
• Gold stars
• Praise used to manipulate

• Character and Team profiles
• Building on strengths
• Design of systems with participants seen as customers
• The learning and development of the individual
• Cooperation – especially with suppliers
• Recognition – unadulterated

References

• Punished by Rewards – by Alfie Kohn
• Human Motivation – by Yoshida Kondo
• A Simpler Way – Margaret Wheatley
• Driving Fear out of the Workplace – by Kathleen Ryan & Dan Oestreich
• Beyond Negotiation – by John Carlisle & Robert Parker
• Team Roles at Work – Meridith Belbin
• Why did I Do That – George New & David Cormack
• Now Discover your Strengths – Marcus Buckingham & Donald Clifton
• How to Reduce Workplace Conflict and Stress – Anna Maravelas

Principal

• We break large problems or organisations into parts and manage the parts. The underpinning assumption is that if the parts are OK then the whole will be OK. It is assumed that the whole is the sum of the parts.

• We view the problems with each part as simple and convergent. It can be solved by rules and regulations or written standards.

• The Principal variable is people’s adherence to the standards.

The recognition that, as the parts interact, we need to manage the whole. When considering whole systems we address:

• The flow of work
• The dynamic nature of systems – they can be growing or declining.
• Delay – an action today might not have consequences till much later, it can also have an effect in another part of the system.
• Systems nest within systems
• The majority of the output from a system is determined by the deign of the system not the diligence of the individuals
• As the parts of a system interact, problems are complex or divergent. In addressing problems we often have to balance opposites.

Manifestation

• The organisation is broken down into parts – sales, purchasing, production, accounting, HR etc.
• Each part is managed by the setting of a budget and the review of performance against that budget.
• Each person within a department is managed through job specifications, performance contracts and appraisal.
• The assumption that challenges are simple (convergent) and that they can be addressed through the use of standards or rules and regulations.
• Auditing against standards.
• The focus on each individual or department is to achieve the target set in the budget.
• Each individual is made accountable
• Suppliers and Customers are kept at arms length. This is especially the case when suppliers are subjected to competitive tendering.
• Non Conformance Reports (ISO 9000) are in context of the individual.
• The concern is the capability or competence of the individual
• As problems are seen as relatively simple (convergent) the thinking is short term

• There is recognition that every part is interdependent.
• The focus is, therefore, on designing effective interdependent systems.
• Systems are depicted as flow maps or “rich diagrams”
• There is a drive to be continually improving these systems.
• With this intention ‘management’ see those people working in the system as customers and make every effort to listen.
• Those working in the system are encouraged to make suggestions as to how the system could be improved.
• The company is agile in the speed with which it is able to respond to improvement suggestions.
• The company think long term and recognise that a decision made today may not produce an effect till some time later.
• As the company is aware that systems can be dynamic they work to develop growing systems and correct declining systems
• The recognition that as systems are complex (divergent) they often require the balancing of opposites.
• Complex systems are managed by tapping into the self organising ability of employees.
• The recognition that output from an individual or function is predominately determined by the design of the system not the diligence of the individual or function
• The concern is the capability of the system
• Problems are seen as complex (divergent) and therefore the thinking is long term.

Losses and Gains

Losses

• Individuals and departments do not see the whole picture, and they focus on their own area of responsibility
• Unconsciously the focus is on maximising the performance of the individual or department and not maximising the whole.
• There is poor communication across departments.
• The misapprehension that complex problems can be managed though simple standards
• Standards are written by the hierarchy
• There is poor ‘ownership’ of the written standards by from line personnel.
• Standards that are not kept up to date
• Auditing against standard rather than reality.
• Compliance to the rules supersedes the desire to meet the needs of the customer and the organisation.
• In the tendering-contract situation the focus moves from the job in hand to securing the greatest profit from the contract.
• These losses are further compounded by the customer having to employ staff to counter balance the manipulations of the contractor.
• Employees become risk averse because they can become open to criticism if they do not follow the set instructions, procedures, laws etc.
• When something goes wrong then it is people rather than the system that is blamed.
• Complex issues become undiscussable.

Gains

• It is simple
• Requires less ‘management’ time
• A successful procedure in one part of the organisation can be quickly transferred to another part.
• The standard once written down can provide a focal point for improvement suggestions.
• Uniformed staff can do the job (to a certain extent) without needing to know all that much.
• It is appropriate in ‘crisis’ situations
• The company can have uniform standards across the whole company
• Standards provide a basis for auditing.

Gains

• The thinking is in sympathy with the complexity of actual reality.
• As the focus on management is in involving everyone in continuously improving systems – then the systems become very effective.
• Staff see their colleagues as customers of their work (not the boss)
• There is, therefore, good communication across departments.
• As work face personnel are involved in writing standards then is there is greater ‘ownership’ and greater clarity
• With the designers of the systems listening to those working in the systems a listening culture evolves.
• With little blame culture there is an openness and a willingness to discuss difficult issues
• A listening and open culture encourages innovation.
• A significant improvement in morale.

Losses

• Especially to start with, there is a lack of uniformity across the company. Uniformity comes after many years of all parts of the company learning from each other.
• Control is predominately through listening to work face people – it takes time.
• Improving systems, as they are interrelated, is complex and takes time. A sophisticated system for responding to suggestions requires to be developed
• Improving systems often involve those out with the company
• Reductionist thinking is what we are taught at school – Systems concepts are against deeply ingrained paradigms.

Language

• The Hierarchal organisation chart
• Departmental budgets
• Targets
• Review against targets/ budgets
• Standards
• Auditing against standards
• Competitive Tendering
• Competition
• Performance Contracts for the individual
• The competence of the individual

• Flow maps
• Suppliers and customers of each part of the system
• Partnership with suppliers and customers
• Cooperation
• The capability of the system
• Self managed teams
• Stable and unstable systems
• Reinforcing and balancing loops
• Delay

References

• The New Economics – W Edwards Deming
• The Fifth Discipline – Peter Senge
• Juran on Planning for Quality – J M Juran
• Seeing Systems – Barry Oshray
• The Art of systems Thinking – Joe O’Conner & Ian McDermott
• The Living Company – Arie de Geus
• Guns, Germs and Steel – Jared Diamond

Principal

• That a measure by itself has value and can be compared with the measure for the previous period and the same period last year
• The presentation of measures in tabulated form
• That we can control a company predominately through accounting figures
• “If you cannot measure it you cannot control it” – the belief that you can measure the majority of the activities within an organisation.

• Only 3% of process produce measures
• Every measurement contains variation.
• To gain meaning from data we require to study measures in context – with the pattern that is emerging.
• The means of studying  data in context is the “control chart”
• The science of studying variation within systems is SPC (Statistical Process Control)
• There are two principal types of variation –a) common cause which reflects the variation of a stable system operating normally – b) special cause when an unexpected variation occurs and requires specific investigation.
• Excessive variation within the organisation’s systems moves it towards increasing complexity and chaos. The aim is to reduce variation both in the processes that can be measured and those that cannot.

Manifestation

• Data is presented in tabulated form, comparing this period’s achievement with the previous period or last year’s period.
• Budgets and targets are established
• Every variation from budget or previous achievement is thought to be explainable.
• Managers therefore waste considerable time trying to find a cause where none exists
• Having found the non existent explanation they take action - and end up increasing the variation and waste within the system. (The official term used for this activity is "Tampering")
• The use of targets to ‘motivate’ staff.
• The dominance of measurement – “what gets measured gets done.”
• The outcome of which is that those parts of the enterprise that are readily measured get the majority of the attention.
• Short term analysis of data

• Managers have some knowledge of SPC.
• Measures are presented in Control Chart format.
• Effort is taken to differentiate between common and special cause variation.
• Focused action to address specific instances – special cause.
• Focused action to reduce common cause variation through improving the design of the system.
• Through the study of measures in context the company is looking for patterns or trends
• From the same principals leadership addresses those items that cannot be measured.
• There is a focus on reducing variation across the whole organisation.
• Long term analysis of data

Losses and Gains

Losses

• Data is regularly misinterpreted. And action taken invariably increases the variation.
• Those aspects of the business that cannot be measured do not receive due attention.
• Deming’s 5th Deadly disease – Managing a company through visible figures alone.
• The distortion of data to meet targets, budgets etc.
• Leaders working with distorted data.
• It allows short term thinking.

Gains:

• None  - other than managers are not required to understand rudimentary SPC
• It simplifies the use of data.

Gains

• The enterprise does not confuse common and special cause variation and hence avoids the losses from this misinterpretation.
• Action is correctly directed at either improving the stable system or investigating unexpected occurrences.
• Readily identifies the systems that are stable and in control
• Readily identifies improvement secured through the redesign of the system
• Greater confidence in measures and hence less likelihood of staff distorting data.
• Manipulation of data easily recognised
• It demands long term thinking
• An appreciation of the need to reduce variation in those aspects of the organisation that do not produce figures

Losses

• A new skill and language requires to be learnt.
• Each measure requires a control chart. 
• Each control chart requires careful interpretation
• It will inevitably lead to a cut back on the number of measures taken.
• It reduces the managers feeling of certainty with the interpretation of the data.
• 5 to 7 data points required before an interpretation of the data can be made

Language

• Monthly tabulated reports
• Variance from budget
• Reasons for variance
• Action to correct variances
• “What gets measured gets managed”

• Gaining knowledge and understanding from data
• Control Charts
• Upper Control Limit; Lower Control Limit
• Common Cause variation
• Special Cause Variation
• Trends, patterns
• Stable and unstable processes

References

• The New Economics – W Edwards Deming
• Understanding Variation – Don Wheeler
• Making Sense of Data – Don Wheeler
• Mastering Statistical Process Control – Tim Stapenhurst

Principal

• Education is through providing information for students (Didactic)
• We learn by being able to store and recall information
• We test absorption of learning though exams.
• Qualifications are used to gauge learning levels achieved.
• We learn through experience
• Only individuals can learn
• Organisations learn through the adoption of new methods.
• Leadership and management is an art.

• The focus of education is to enhance our learning ability
• The basis of personal learning is an understanding of the theoretical assumptions that underpin our thinking and hence our actions; followed by a willingness to challenge those assumptions in light of modern research.
• The organisation or society has a learning ability as well as the individual
• Scientific Method – Theories are developed through the disciplined application of a hypothesis, experiments and a review of results. If results confirm hypothesis then a theory can be proposed.
• For example we research how the brain works, from which we develop first a theory and then exercises  to enhance our learning ability
• Leadership and management is the application of scientific research using scientific method

Manifestation

• Qualifications are used to reflect levels of intelligence or competence
• Leadership is seen as a personal attribute.
• Management training is predominately about methods – i.e. accounts, project management, marketing, etc.
• Training is taken up predominately by middle and lower management.
• The company progresses through the application of the latest method (flavour of the month) such as Six Sigma, Lean thinking, Behaviourism etc.
• Little management time is devoted to learning from past predictions.
• The mode of management is short term often referred to as "Crisis Management"
•  Learning is in context of the individual only.
• As the returns from training are not measurable, training investment is modest.

• Learning is gauged in context of being able to see the whole and the perception with which problems are addressed.
• There is a climate of learning throughout the organisation.
• There is knowledge of the recent research into management.
• Learning is seen from the perspective of both the individual as well as the organisation.
• Predictions from theory are made and there is a careful review of the results to confirm or contradict the initial theory/prediction.
• Leaders focus on the long term and will allocate considerable time to think through problems.
• Senior executives do the most training.
• The company has many ‘experiments’ running to enable organisational learning.

Losses and Gains

Losses

• The West funded considerable research into the theories of management throughout the twentieth century but little is actually applied in our organisations.
• We continue to use methods – such as incentives – that have been proven to be damaging.
• We continue to use “flavours of the month” – Six Sigma, “Lean” thinking, etc without appreciating that they were originally developed from a different theoretical base.
• We adapt these new methods to suit existing theories and hence secure little progress.
• We are not aware of our mental models and therefore have no basis from which to recognise new research and findings. We, therefore suffer from paradigm paralysis
• Reliance on experience, which tends to simply develop skills in the application of existing mindsets.
• A lowering of morale when there is little opportunity to apply learning.

Gains

• We have the comfort of carrying forward what we are taught at school into the adult world.
• Most of us have invested in the current management paradigm. By adhering to this paradigm we do not run the risk of losing that investment.
• Challenging our mental models is a very uncomfortable process.
• Because of our education system, most of our colleagues share our mental models.

Gains

• Decisions etc are based on well founded knowledge
• The majority of us enjoy learning.
• Morale of employees is further  enhanced when they have the opportunity to apply learning
• Advantage is taken of the significant opportunities from organisational learning
• There is far greater appreciation by all employees of the whole system
• The quality of improvement suggestions coming from the workface is greatly enhanced.
• Explaining and getting buy in for a change in direction is easier with an informed workforce.

Losses

• The investment required to create a true learning organisation
• There will be many challenges to management; employees will expect to be persuaded by reason rather than by dictate.
• The enterprise will require a sophisticated system to be able to hear and implement the many improvement suggestions coming from all over the company.
• There will be great variety all over the company as to how to best approach issues; it is only in the long term that variety will start coming together around an optimum method.

Language

• Qualifications
• Certificates of competence
• Exams, tests
• Presentation and instruction
• Dogma

• Underpinning theoretical assumptions
• Paradigms or Mental Models
• Spatial Knowledge
• Learning ability
• Organisational Learning Ability
• Innovation, Creativity and experiment
• Research
• Dialogue and team learning
• Reason

References

• Future Edge – Joel Baker
• The work of Reuven Feuerstein
• The New Economics – W Edwards Deming
• The Fifth Discipline – Peter Senge
• Presence – Peter Senge etc
• The Power of Learning – Klas Mellander
• Lateral Thinking for Managers and Opportunities – Edward de Bono
• The Mind Map Book – Tony Buzan
• How the mind works – Steven Pinker
• The New Wealth of Nations – John Raven.